Oh, noooooooo!

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I have been informed that Ipswich… is not perfect.

I received a very sweet message from a friend, first outlining a bunch of GOOD stuff about this town: Ipswich Clambake, the waterways, Family Dollar Store… and people. And then my friend makes a very good point. We don’t have everything.

And she’s right.

We don’t.

There’s not much in the way of nightlife (at least if your definition of “night” extends much past 7 pm), there’s no movie theatre. Our only bookstore is the Book Nook in River’s Edge.

There’s also no Wal-Mart. No Denny’s. No Gap. And most important of all… no Starbucks.

You know what? I’m okay with that.

The lack of a Starbucks just might have been the reason I wanted to move to Ipswich. No, really. I love it that Zumi’s, Ipswich’s coffee shop, is run by an Ipswich family, and displays artwork by Ipswich artists. It’s our coffee shop, not a corporate idea of what an Ipswich coffee shop should look like.

Living out here in small-town America we do live without some things. That’s the reason many of us came here. Sure I have to trek on into Danvers and Peabody on occasion for ballet slippers, or some other item that isn’t available in town. (And there’s nothing like a foray into a crowded Target to make me appreciate my quiet, deprived little home town.)

No, Ipswich isn’t perfect. Niether am I. I love her anyway.

P.S. What my friend needs most is a really good yoga class… anybody know of one? I don’t know a Yogi from a Beara, so I’m no help…

Imperfection has its charm… although I must admit this window has since been painted.